THE BUND
HOUSE: A STORY OF THE PARSIS OF KASHMIR
( Photo courtesy Robin Koul )
( Photo courtesy Robin Koul ) (Pestonjee Building in Srinagar with the White Horse:
Photo Courtesy Arvind Gigoo )
The
Parsis are members of the Zoroastrian community who migrated from Persia to
India between the eighth and tenth centuries following the Arab conquest of
Iran, seeking to preserve their faith. They first settled at Sanjan in Gujarat
and came to be known as Parsis, a term derived from Pars, the old name for
Persia. Today, they number fewer than sixty thousand, concentrated mainly in
Mumbai and Gujarat. Despite their small population, their contribution to
Indian commerce, industry and philanthropy, through business houses such as
Tata, Godrej and Wadia, has been extraordinary.
Their
religion, Zoroastrianism, was founded by the prophet Zarathustra and is one of
the world's oldest monotheistic faiths. Zoroastrians believe in one God, Ahura
Mazda, the Wise Lord and creator of all that is good. Their religious
philosophy emphasises the struggle between Asha, representing truth and order,
and Druj, representing falsehood and disorder, with Angra Mainyu associated
with the forces of evil. Central to their ethical principles is the triad of
Humata, Hukhta and Huvarshta, meaning Good Thoughts, Good Words and Good Deeds.
Human beings possess free will and are expected to choose righteousness over
falsehood. Fire is revered not as God itself but as a pure symbol of Ahura
Mazda. Prayers are therefore offered before a sacred flame in a fire temple,
known as an Agiary. Their scriptures are contained in the Avesta.
Traditionally, Zoroastrians have sought to prevent the pollution of the earth,
fire and water by consigning their dead to a Dakhma, commonly known as a Tower
of Silence.
The
Parsis have made an outstanding contribution to India's trade, commerce and
industry. This small community established institutions that helped shape
modern India. Great business houses, including Tata, Wadia and Shapoorji
Pallonji, pioneered industrial development, shipping, motor vehicles, steel
production and philanthropy. Their traditions of enterprise, integrity and
charity earned them widespread respect across the subcontinent, including in
the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, where Parsi traders, professionals and
businessmen established themselves during the Dogra period.
The
Parsi presence in Kashmir, however, was never substantial in numerical terms.
It was essentially built around three principal families who settled on the
Bund in Srinagar, accompanied by a small number of professionals and
individuals associated with trade and other occupations. The Dhanjibhoy,
Pestonjee and Patel families became particularly familiar names in the city's
commercial and social life. Their influence was far greater than their numbers
might suggest. They established businesses, managed transport, served in
administrative roles, dealt with European firms and became part of Srinagar's
everyday life.
Their
story is important because it illustrates how a small community, without a
large religious establishment or a substantial population, could leave a
lasting imprint on the cultural memory of a city. The Parsi chapter of
Kashmir's history survives not through imposing monuments or grand
institutions, but through family names, old buildings, business premises,
recollections of individual personalities and a cemetery hidden within the
Badami Bagh Cantonment.
Census
figures underline the small size of the Parsi community in Jammu and Kashmir.
The 1891 Census recorded nine Parsis in the state, comprising two women and
seven men. Later figures record twenty-nine Parsis in the state in 1941. Other
historical accounts give different totals for particular parts of the state,
reflecting the need to distinguish between figures for Jammu and Kashmir as a
whole and those for the Valley alone. The essential point remains unchanged.
The Parsi population was small, yet its members became familiar figures in the
commercial and social life of Srinagar.
ARRIVAL
ON THE BUND, SRINAGAR
When
the Jhelum ran grey and sluggish in the winter of 1892, and the chinar trees
along the Bund stood bare, a Parsi gentleman from Bombay arrived in Srinagar by
Tonga. He carried two steel trunks, a leather ledger and a letter from the Residency.
His name was Dhanjibhoy. His family already operated trading establishments in
Bombay, Zanzibar and Canton. They had learnt from the British Resident that
Srinagar needed a reliable transport service capable of carrying post and
passengers punctually. According to the account preserved in the family's
history, Dhanjibhoy was allotted eleven kanals of land by Maharaja Hari Singh
on a long-term lease for commercial purposes. The arrangement enabled him to
establish a horse-drawn postal carriage service connecting Srinagar with
Muzaffarabad and Rawalpindi. There, he erected a signboard in English and Urdu
bearing the name M/S Imperial Carrying Company, followed by the words: Booking
for Tongas, Parcels and Passengers. Srinagar to Muzaffarabad to Rawalpindi.
The
Dhanjibhoy family had established commercial contacts in Rawalpindi and
encountered little difficulty in setting up offices in both cities. Rawalpindi
had developed into an important commercial gateway to Kashmir and Afghanistan
following the establishment of a British cantonment in 1849. Parsi traders and
professionals gradually became part of its commercial life. By the late
nineteenth century, some had attained considerable prominence. One such figure
was Parsi Dhanjibhoy, who is remembered for serving as a First Class Magistrate
and establishing a public library at Massey Gate in 1895.
(Tombstone of Sorab Dhanjibuy in Aramgah,
Srinagar. Photo by Robin Koul, 2026 )
Before
Partition, Rawalpindi had a substantial Parsi presence, with approximately
eighty families associated with trade, business and philanthropy. In 1898, the
community established a large cemetery on Murree Road, complete with a
distinctive funeral building and inscriptions in English and Gujarati. The
cemetery became an enduring reminder of a community whose commercial and social
influence extended beyond the cities in which its members lived. Partition
transformed this landscape. Many Parsi families left Rawalpindi for Mumbai,
Karachi and Iran. The surviving community dwindled, and the old cemetery became
an increasingly important reminder of the past. The story of the Parsis in
Rawalpindi offers a useful parallel to their experience in Kashmir: a
once-active community gradually diminished, leaving behind places and memories
that outlasted its physical presence.
In
Srinagar, Dhanjibhoy established a modest hut for himself and a long stable
capable of accommodating twelve horses. In the mornings, the sound of horses
being groomed mingled with the call to prayer from across the river. Dressed in
a white Dugli and Topi, and speaking Urdu with a Gujarati accent, he attracted
considerable curiosity. Yet he was fair in his dealings. His Tongas departed on
time, and his parcels arrived intact. In a city where transport and
communication depended heavily on horses, roads and human reliability, such
qualities mattered. Dhanjibhoy was not merely operating a business. He was
helping to maintain a connection between Srinagar and the wider commercial
world beyond the Valley.
DHANJIBHOY
KA AHATA LAL CHOWK
The
land associated with Dhanjibhoy eventually became known as Dhanjibhoy Ka Ahata. It lay behind what would later become the
Cooperative Super Bazaar in Lal Chowk, rather than directly on the Bund itself.
For more than half a century, the Ahata served as one of Srinagar's principal Tonga
stands. Tongas arrived and departed throughout the day, bringing passengers,
carrying parcels and connecting different parts of the city with routes leading
beyond the Valley. At the centre of the yard stood a huge stone tank where
horses could drink water after long journeys. Around its edges sat the chaayas,
or tea sellers, with their brass samovars. They served steaming cups of Chai and
bread to travellers and Tongawalas.
In
later years, when Tongas disappeared from the city's streets, the same Ahata
became a yard for city buses. The old name nevertheless survived in the
memories and conversations of the older generation.
Dhanjibhoy
Ka Ahata is an example of how a name associated with a private individual can
become embedded in the geography of a city. The original business may
disappear, the horses may be gone, and the premises may acquire a different use,
but the name continues to recall a period when the place had a distinct
identity.
PATEL
POLICE A NAME THAT STAYED
The
second principal family was the Patels. Mr Patel was a clerk by background,
with an aptitude for organising traffic and managing administrative paperwork.
During the reign of Maharaja Hari Singh, when efforts were being made to
modernise the administration, there was a need to bring greater order to
Srinagar's increasingly busy Tonga traffic. Patel was appointed to the traffic
wing. His name gradually became associated with the very system he helped
administer. Within a few months, people stopped referring to the traffic police
by their official designation. They began calling them the Patel Police. Whenever
a tongawala blocked Residency Road, someone would suggest calling the Patel
Police. Mr Patel would arrive with his notebook in hand and settle the dispute
in a quiet voice, without shouting or creating a scene. His reputation rested
on his ability to manage difficult situations calmly.
He
lived with his wife and three children in a building on the Bund, in the
premises now associated with Ahdoo's Hotel. His sons, Rustom, affectionately
known as Russy, and Jahangir, popularly called Jangu, grew up speaking Kashmiri
with their friends in the neighbourhood and Gujarati at home. They also had a
sister.
The
family was part of the neighbourhood rather than a distant or isolated
presence. Its children shared the ordinary experiences of growing up in
Srinagar, while their household retained its Parsi cultural traditions.
Rustom
Patel became known for his sporting abilities, particularly his cricket. For
some time in 1950, he served as Assistant Physical Director at Sri Pratap College.
His interest in sport and his professional life connected him with a generation
of young Kashmiris whose social world was not divided neatly along religious or
cultural lines. Eventually, Russy moved to Mumbai. Jangu,
too, became known for his cricket. The brothers eventually left the city in
which they had grown up, and the family's former residence became a reminder of
a social world that was slowly disappearing. One amongst the brothers is
reported to have joined some Swami’s Ashram and became its important
functionary following the Swami's death. His journey from Srinagar's sporting
circles to the spiritual environment of the Ashram represents another strand in
the varied lives of the people associated with the Parsi community of Kashmir.
The
expression Patel Police remained part of Srinagar's local vocabulary. It is one
of those revealing details of urban history in which an individual's name
survives long after the institution, occupation or circumstances that gave rise
to it have changed.
PESTONJEE
AND COMPANY AUCTIONEERS AGENTS AND STORYTELLERS
The
third and most influential family was that of Pestonjee Senior, whose name is
also written as Pistonjee in some accounts. He was a registered state
auctioneer and one of the best-known Parsi businessmen in Srinagar.
( Photo Behram Pestonjee . Photo Courtesy : Robin Koul 2026 )
Unlike
Dhanjibhoy, he was not a transporter. His business was based on auctioneering,
commercial agency and the sale of imported goods. Whenever the government
needed to auction timber, or a British officer leaving Kashmir wished to sell
furniture, carpets, a piano or other household possessions, Pestonjee conducted
the sale. His business depended on trust, knowledge of the market and an
ability to deal with people from different backgrounds. The state recognised
him as an official auctioneer, and his professional standing extended beyond
ordinary commercial transactions.
He
was allotted land by the Maharaja, and he constructed two buildings, one for his
residence and the other for business. He also rented commercial premises to
other firms. One of the floors housed the India Assurance Company. The members
of the Pestonjee family, including Behram and Khusroo, were associated with the
insurance business. Khusroo Pestonjee was a classmate of Dr Farooq Abdullah.
His sisters were Fehmi and Mehar, whose names are remembered in connection with
the family's household and its Navroz celebrations. The family combined
commercial activity with a recognisable presence in Srinagar's social life.
Pestonjee
was an agent for several English firms and a stockist of imported goods. His
business also extended to tourism and winter sports. When the Ski Club of India
established its skiing activities at Gulmarg and Khilanmarg during the 1920s,
Pestonjee's firm became associated with the enterprise. It supplied skiing
equipment imported from England and sold it to visitors who came to Kashmir to
enjoy the winter slopes.
The
firm's activities were not confined to selling equipment. It also operated a
tourist agency from the building constructed by the family and subsequently
renovated during Maharaja Hari Singh's reign. At a time when Kashmir's tourist
economy was increasingly connected with European visitors, such businesses
helped facilitate travel, accommodation and the purchase of specialised goods.
Pestonjee
was also the stockist of White Horse whisky. The brand became inseparable from
the family's public identity because of the large wooden horse displayed
outside its business premises. That horse, known throughout Srinagar as ‘Pestonjee Ka Ghoda’, became one of the
most recognisable landmarks on Residency Road, Srinagar.
It
is also said that Pestonjee advised Maharaja Hari Singh on the establishment of
a bank in Kashmir. The Jammu and Kashmir Bank Limited was established in 1938.
His name carried weight both at the Residency and in the Maharaja's Durbar.
The
Pestonjee family thus represented a different aspect of the Parsi presence in
Kashmir. Dhanjibhoy had connected Srinagar with the outside world through
transport and postal services. Patel had become associated with the
administration of traffic. Pestonjee, meanwhile, had established a commercial
house that served the government, European residents, tourists and local
customers.
THE
BUND AN UPMARKET EUROPEAN ENCLAVE
Life
on the Bund was markedly different from that in the rest of Srinagar. During
the Dogra period, it developed into an important address for European visitors,
commercial firms and establishments catering to the requirements of the British
Residency and the tourist population. The shops sold goods that were difficult
to find in the traditional Bazaars. These included Swiss condensed milk,
English biscuits, German binoculars, French perfume, fishing rods and other
imported products. The commercial character of the Bund reflected the presence
of Europeans and the growing tourist economy of Kashmir.
The
Srinagar Club was nearby. Indians were generally excluded from membership and
access, except when serving in permitted capacities. The British Resident's
office stood where the Arts Emporium is situated today, and the road was known
as Residency Road. The early houseboats of Kashmir were moored along the Bund,
accommodating European visitors who came to the Valley during the summer.
The
three Parsi families occupied a distinctive position in this environment. They
understood the requirements of European customers and could communicate in
English, maintain commercial accounts and deal with imported goods. At the same
time, they lived among Kashmiris, employed local carpenters and cooks, and
participated in the ordinary life of the city. Their presence was therefore not
simply commercial. It also represented a form of cultural interaction. They
were neither an isolated European enclave nor a large local community with its
own extensive institutions. They were a small group whose members had
established a place for themselves through business, professional service and
personal relationships.
The
Bund also attracted traders and visitors from outside Kashmir. Parsi merchants
were associated with the wider trade in pashmina and handicrafts during the
reigns of Maharaja Ranbir Singh and Maharaja Pratap Singh. The names of some
prominent Parsi figures, including Sir Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy, come up in discussions
of Parsi enterprise and trade in Pashmina Shawls.
An
anecdote associated with the year 1938 captures something of their standing.
Heavy snowfall had blocked the Banihal Pass, and the post from Rawalpindi had
failed to arrive for ten days. The Residency was anxious about the delay.
Pestonjee Senior organised his men, while Dhanjibhoy provided horses to help
clear a route. The Patel family established a relay system using runners. Although
this was not their official responsibility, they joined hands to help restore
the communication link. The mail eventually arrived, and the Resident
reportedly sent a letter of appreciation to all three families. According to
the story, the letter was displayed for many years in the office of the India
Assurance Company.
NAVROZ
ON THE JHELUM
The
Parsis never established a fire temple in Kashmir because their community was
too small to support such an institution. Prayers were held in their homes, and
religious observances were conducted within the family. Navroz, the Parsi New
Year, was an occasion for the three principal families to come together. The
celebrations at Pestonjee's residence brought relatives and friends into a
shared domestic setting, preserving traditions that connected the families with
their ancestral faith and cultural inheritance. The women, Fehmi and Mehar,
Pestonjee's daughters, prepared traditional dishes such as Dhansak and patra ni
machhi, while the Kashmiri cook prepared Nadru Yakhni. The menu reflected the
meeting of two culinary traditions, one rooted in Parsi culture and the other
in the food habits of Kashmir. Behram and Khusroo would appear in their
traditional Dugli and Topi. Their dress was a visible expression of identity in
a city where the family had become well known. Khusroo, who had been a
schoolmate of the young Farooq Abdullah, was particularly remembered in Sonwar
for visiting the hair salon dressed in full traditional Parsi attire. His
appearance was unusual enough to attract attention, but it was also part of the
neighbourhood's familiarity with the family.
The
celebrations were modest in scale, as one would expect from a community of so
few families. Yet their significance went beyond the food or the rituals. They
offered an opportunity to preserve religious and cultural practices in a place
where the Parsis had no fire temple, no large congregation and no extensive network
of community institutions. Navroz on the Jhelum was therefore both a family
occasion and a reminder of the community's place in Kashmir.
WHITE
HORSE ON RESIDENCY ROAD
For
decades, a large white horse stood outside Pestonjee and Company's premises on
Residency Road. It was not a living animal but a wooden model that became one
of the best-known landmarks of old Srinagar. The horse was associated with
White Horse whisky, of which the Pestonjee family was a stockist. According to
the family's account, the model was presented by the makers of the whisky in
Edinburgh as a mark of recognition for their agents in Kashmir. It was
specially packed in London and transported by sea to Bombay before being
brought by rail and road to Srinagar.
(The White Horse inside a Mall now. Photo
Robin Koul)
There
are, however, differing recollections about the horse's original provenance.
One published account of an old photograph suggests that it may have originated
as a gift from a polo-playing Maharaja of Jaipur to the Maharaja of Kashmir
before being acquired and displayed by a White Horse whisky dealer. The precise
origin remains a matter for further historical investigation.
Whatever
its original journey, the model became inseparable from the Pestonjee name.
Installed outside the family's building, it faced the Jhelum and could be seen
by anyone walking along Residency Road. For generations of Srinagar residents,
the horse was a familiar sight. Travellers, shopkeepers, policemen and
schoolchildren knew it. Nobody needed detailed directions to locate the
building. People would simply say, 'Near the White Horse.' It became known
locally as Pestonjee Ka Ghoda. The expression entered the city's everyday
vocabulary and survived long after the original commercial establishment had
changed.
The
original Pestonjee building eventually disappeared, and a shopping mall was
constructed on the site. The White Horse, however, survived. It was moved
inside the mall, where it remains a physical reminder of the old establishment.
Its relocation changed its relationship with the city. Once visible to everyone
passing along Residency Road, it is now largely overlooked by people who may
not know what it represents. A familiar public landmark has become an obscure
object inside a commercial building. The horse deserves recognition not merely
as an old advertising model but as a surviving artefact of Srinagar's
commercial and social history. Its association with the Pestonjee family
connects it with the larger story of the Parsis who once lived and worked on
the Bund.
A
LEDGER ENTRY 1899
In
2023, a young researcher from the University of Kashmir, while investigating
the commercial history of the Bund, reportedly discovered an old ledger in the
archives. It was identified as Dhanjibhoy's booking register from 1899. On one
of its pages, written in careful handwriting, was the following entry:
“Two
parcels. Books. From Miss Jones, Residency, to Mr B Pestonjee, The Bund.
Charges, Four annas.”
The
entry is modest, but its historical value lies in its ordinariness. It records
a transaction between two named individuals, linking the Residency with
Pestonjee's premises and revealing the kind of routine commercial activity that
sustained the Bund. The parcels contained books. Their sender was Miss Jones,
associated with the Residency, and their recipient was Mr B Pestonjee. The
charge was four annas. In a few words, the ledger preserves a fragment of a
working relationship that might otherwise have disappeared completely.
Such
records are important to social history because they reveal the daily activities
that larger political narratives often overlook. They tell us how goods moved,
how people communicated and how businesses depended on trust and regularity. More
than a century later, the names recorded in the ledger evoke a Srinagar where
the post, the Tonga, the commercial office and the Residency were connected by
a network of ordinary transactions. The record also brings together two of the
central names in this story, Dhanjibhoy and Pestonjee, whose businesses helped
define the character of the Bund.
NINETEEN
FORTY SEVEN AND AFTER
Then
came 1947. The road to Rawalpindi was closed, and the Tonga business that had
sustained Dhanjibhoy for decades was severely affected. The bus service
connecting Srinagar with Rawalpindi also came to a halt. The commercial
relationship between the two cities, once maintained by regular transport and
postal services, was disrupted by Partition. For months, the Bund remained
unusually quiet as many European families departed. The commercial environment
that had supported several of its businesses began to change. The Parsis adapted
to the new circumstances. Dhanjibhoy converted his stable into shops. Pestonjee
continued his auctioneering and insurance businesses. Patel's children pursued
their education and careers. Russy, who was good at mathematics and known for
his sporting abilities, eventually left for Bombay. His departure in 1952 to
pursue further studies marked another stage in the dispersal of the family.
Jangu followed two years later. The family house on the Bund became increasingly
empty. The children who had grown up in Srinagar began establishing their lives
elsewhere, and the familiar routines of the Parsi households gradually faded.
The
community's decline was not the result of a single event. It reflected the
cumulative effects of changing commercial circumstances, the disappearance of
older forms of transport, the departure of family members and the attractions
of professional opportunities in larger cities. Partition had severed an
important commercial route. The old businesses had to adapt, and the younger
generation increasingly looked beyond Kashmir for education and employment.
Over time, the number of permanent Parsi residents diminished until the
community no longer maintained a settled presence in the Valley.
PANTHA
CHOWK AND THE SALE OF 1967
During
the 1960s, another setback confronted the Parsi families. The state required
land for development, and the Parsi holdings at Pantha Chowk, which covered a
substantial area and had been used for grazing horses, were acquired for what
would become the Khunmoh Industrial Estate. Dhanjibhoy was growing old, and his
wife had died. His two daughters were living in Bombay. In 1967, he called
Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, who was then out of power but remained one of the
most influential political figures in Kashmir, and Haji Ghulam Mohiuddin, a
well-known businessman, to his hut.
He
sold his property on the Bund to them through an irrevocable power of attorney
for a modest sum. According to the account preserved about the transaction, he
did not want the property to fall into neglect. He then boarded a night bus to
Jammu and travelled by train from there to Bombay. He never returned to
Kashmir. The sale marked the end of Dhanjibhoy's personal association with the
Bund. The property, once connected with the sound of horses, the movement of
parcels and the daily activity of the tonga stand, passed into other hands.
His
former hut is now associated with Sadiq Handicrafts, Mehta Photographers and a
shop called Suffering Moses. Pestonjee Senior died in the early 1970s. His
sons, Behram and Khusroo, attempted to continue the family business. However,
the nationalisation of the insurance business and changes in government
procedures weakened their commercial activities. The auctioneering business
also declined as the economic environment changed. Behram moved to Mumbai, while
Khusroo remained in Srinagar for a few more years, looking after the family
house and dusting the White Horse every morning. In 1978, he finally locked the
house and left for Mumbai.
Their
departure did not erase that association. Patel also died in Srinagar. By the
time the older generation had passed away and the younger members had moved
elsewhere, the three principal Parsi families no longer formed a settled
community on the Bund.
THE
ARAMGAH AT BADAMI BAGH
Many
people may not know that the Parsi Zoroastrian Aramgah at Badami Bagh in
Srinagar is one of the most important surviving physical reminders of the
community's history in Kashmir. The word Aramgah denotes a place of rest, and
this cemetery became the final resting place of members of the small Parsi community
who lived an
According
to records published by the Parsi community, Maharaja Pratap Singh granted land
to the Parsi Zoroastrian community in 1893, in recognition of its services to
the state and specifically for the establishment of an Aramgah. The grant is
significant because it demonstrates that, although small in number, the Parsis
had an established presence in the social and commercial life of Srinagar.
Over
time, the state Army authorities acquired a substantial portion of the original
land for the establishment of the Badami Bagh Cantonment Bazaar. The remaining
Aramgah covers approximately 1.53 acres.The army not only kept the place free
from any encroachment but also helped to maintain it.
The
property comprises a Bungli with two rooms and a verandah, a cemetery, a
hothouse and garden shed, and living quarters for a gardener or watchman. The
surrounding area includes an orchard of almond and walnut trees. The Bungli was
used for prayers, and the performance of obsequies before the deceased were
buried in the cemetery. The Aramgah was more than a burial ground. It
represented the community's religious presence in a place where no fire temple
had ever been established. It provided a designated space for funerary
observances and ensured that members of the community could be laid to rest
according to their traditions.
( Inside the Parsi Aramgah, Srinagar: Photo Robin Koul 2026)
(A stone plaque inside Aramgah,
Srinagar . Photo 2026 by Robin Koul)
With
the disappearance of the permanent Parsi population from Srinagar, the Aramgah
gradually ceased to serve its original community in the way it once had.
Published accounts differ about the date of the last interment. One community
account gives 1986, while another later report records a funeral in 2005. The
site remains an important part of Kashmir's historical heritage. It records the
presence of people whose names once appeared on business premises, in
commercial ledgers and in the everyday vocabulary of Srinagar.
.
(The
well inside Parsi Aramgah, Srinagar . Photo Robin Koul)
The
Army maintains the property. The graves are kept clean, and the grass is
trimmed. Accounts of visits to the cemetery describe approximately thirty-two
intact graves, together with damaged fragments of older gravestones. Names are
inscribed in English and Gujarati, preserving the identities of people who once
belonged to the Valley's small Parsi community. Among the names associated with
the cemetery are Dhanjibhoy and Pestonjee. The resting place of Bahram
Pestonjee provides a particularly direct link between the cemetery and the
family whose commercial establishment became famous for the White Horse on
Residency Road. Some graves belong to children who died in infancy during the
difficult winters of the past. One inscription associated with Bahram Pestonjee
has been recorded as reading: 'He lived and died in the Kashmir he loved, to be
remembered by what he had done.' The sentiment captures the emotional
significance of the cemetery. It suggests that Kashmir was not simply a place
where members of the Parsi community conducted business before returning
elsewhere. For at least some of them, it became home.
The
Aramgah also reminds us that the history of a community cannot be understood
solely through its commercial success. Its members were born, raised, worked,
formed friendships, suffered losses and died in the Valley. Their graves
establish a lasting connection between the community and the place in which it
lived. Inside this historic cemetery (Aaramgah) at Badami Bagh, Srinagar, are buried
the following members of the Parsi community:
Seth
Pestonjee Shapurji Unvala (7th Sep, 1907), Behram Navroji Pestonjee (19th Jan,
1986), Sir Barjor Jamsetji Dalal (12th Dec, 1936), Khorshed Dara Karanjavala
(12th Nov, 2005), Dhun Sohrab Dhunjibhoy (20th Oct, 1965), Tehmurasp Pestonji
Elavia (29th May, 1962), Earuch Tehmurasp Saklat (2nd Sep, 1950), Jehangir
Dubash (5th Oct, 1938), Tehmurasp Byramjee Saklat (13th Nov, 1933), Meherbanu
Heraji Kapadia (23rd Mar, 1922), Rati Kaikushru Mistry (20th Oct, 1973), Baby
of Jal Laksari (21st Nov, 1921), Behramjee Ruttonjee Saklatvala (23rd Apr,
1912), Burjor P. Banaji (25th May, 1963), Baby Gulcheher Tehmurasp Saklat (6th
Feb, 1908), Jehangir Dinshaw Vakil (18th Sep, 1913), Jall Mehta (17th Apr,
1917), Merwanji Kavasji Sett (22nd May, 1961), Dorabji Satha, Rumi Homi Mistry,
Dinbai Jehangir Sabawala, Pirojshaw Dinshawji Bhesania (30th May, 1963), Baby
Hiraji Kapadia, Capt. Hosy A. Chinoy (26th Apr, 1959), Rustom Burjorji
Jehangirji Contractor (16th May, 1959) and Jamshed Bahadurji Contractor (26th
May, 1959).
PARSIS
IN HIMACHAL AND PUNJAB
The
decline of the Parsi presence in Kashmir forms part of a wider story of
dispersal across northern India. In Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, too, the
community has become very small.
In
Punjab, only nine Parsis were recorded in the 2011 Census. This figure followed
the decline of once-prominent Parsi families in Amritsar, including the
Manekshaws, Boggas and Bhandaris, who were associated with clinics, ice
factories and other commercial activities. The Bhandari family was also connected
with Bhandari Bridge.Partition forced many families to move to Delhi and
Mumbai, accelerating the decline of established Parsi networks in the region.
Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, born in Amritsar in 1914, remains one of the
best-known figures associated with the city. The deaths and departures of
prominent community members further reduced the visibility of the Parsi
presence. In Himachal Pradesh, the 2011 Census recorded thirty-seven Parsis:
twenty-eight in Kangra, seven in Chamba and two in Sirmour. These numbers
indicate a very limited presence rather than a substantial, long-established
community comparable to that once found in Mumbai or parts of Gujarat. The
situation in these regions resembles the experience of Kashmir in one important
respect. The community's historical presence cannot be measured only by the
number of people who remain today. Cemeteries, old residences, business records
and family histories preserve evidence of communities that once contributed to
local life.
The
Parsi experience also demonstrates how migration, changing employment patterns
and the concentration of economic opportunities in larger cities can gradually
disperse small communities. Once their numbers fall below a certain level, the
maintenance of religious and social institutions becomes increasingly
difficult.
WHAT
REMAINS TODAY IN KASHMIR
There
are no permanent Parsi residents left in the Kashmir Valley, and the community
no longer maintains a settled presence in Jammu. Its members and descendants
have largely moved elsewhere, particularly to Mumbai.
Russy
Patel, now in his eighties, lives in Dadar, Mumbai. He still remembers the
sound of the Jhelum in March, when the ice began to melt. Jangu, too, retains
his connection with Srinagar and occasionally visits the city in which he grew
up
The
story of the Parsis of Kashmir is therefore not simply one of migration or
demographic decline. It is also a story of belonging. These families arrived
from outside the Valley, established businesses, learned to live among
Kashmiris and became part of Srinagar's social fabric. Their children spoke
Kashmiri with local friends, attended local schools and formed friendships that
crossed cultural boundaries. They did not need a large population to leave a
lasting impression. Dhanjibhoy's name survived in the Ahata associated with his
transport business. Patel's name became attached to the traffic police.
Pestonjee's name became inseparable from the wooden horse that stood outside his
commercial premises. These names became part of the city's vocabulary.
The
three families also remind us that the history of Kashmir is not confined to
its rulers, political struggles, religious institutions or major cultural
traditions. It includes the smaller communities whose members contributed to
trade, administration, tourism and everyday urban life.
The
Parsi presence was modest in numbers, but its story offers a distinctive
perspective on the social history of Srinagar during the Dogra period and the
decades that followed. It reveals a city in which commercial establishments,
family homes, transport yards and social relationships connected people of
different backgrounds.
The
chinar leaves still fall every autumn. The graves at Badami Bagh remain under
their quiet watch. The White Horse stands inside the shopping mall now,
separated from the street where generations once knew it. The old Tonga routes
have changed, but the memory of the people who travelled them survives.
(Avtar Mota)
PS
This write-up would not have been
possible had my friend Robin Koul not visited the Parsi Aramgah( Srinagar ) in 2026 and clicked these historical
photographs.
